Journey Begins

"I shall be taking my leave here. Inform His Majesty at your next convenience."

"Are you certain that you do not require assistance, Clement? I can convince Father to allow me to join you."

The sun is barely peeking over the horizon, leaving us in the last hour of night's shadow.

The black limp satchel weighs down on my left arm as Duncan follows me out past the gates of Melior. When the prince heard of my changes to the schedule, he immediately appealed to King Aufrey to join. Needless to say, he was shot down immediately.

"How am I to take away Melior's shield?"

"Melior does not require me to be present at all times! I believe your safety to be a far greater priority."

No matter how far we walk, the prince is reluctant to turn back. Peo is normally the one walking one pace behind me at all times. Now she is stuck trailing even further at the back whilst lugging a large backpack beneath her twin shields. At some point, I need Duncan to leave.

"With her Blessed Knight away, who will defend the city in the case of an unexpected threat?"

"Perhaps, but—!"

"Besides…"

Duncan wanted to speak up, but I quickly began the next sentence and brought my gaze to his.

"If you were to leave as well, who would welcome me when I return?"

"Pardon?"

I look up and stare at the walls that I've been occupying since I first arrived in this world. While primitive, I can't imagine anything more sturdy than these towering stones.

"I haven't been present for long, but you have made my experience far better than I could have ever hoped. Seeing you at the gates would truly feel as if I returned 'home'."

"Clement…"

The first part isn't a lie. These past several days, I've been thrown all over the place with little time to rest. Without the prince being there to guide me through the castle life, I just may have killed every knight that so much as gave me a strange look. This castle feels as if it's full of enemies, but I need not worry while I have a ticket with the highest security clearance by my side. Obviously, the last statement was just to butter him up some more.

"I apologise on my father's behalf. You have been tasked with so much in so little time."

Duncan bows his head, eyes staring somewhere beyond the grass in front of his eyes.

"Father has been on edge for months, fearing that we may be falling behind the other nations. With your arrival, he likely hungers for results."

"That is to be expected. I'm here to provide results, so it only makes sense that I perform my job without delay."

We finally stop walking as orange fully consumes the sky. It's about time for my ride to arrive.

"Mr. Knight!"

Speak of the devil and he shall appear. The grinding of wood on stone can be heard behind us as a wagon exits the city walls. First we see the chestnut body of the mule pulling the load, then we see the waving figure of a girl at the reins.

"Not quite what I expected of a merchant."

"I suppose you can consider her more of a supplier. I'm sure it is clear why she was insistent on finding an escort."

Peo moves around my body to stand clear of the oncoming vehicle. I take this opportunity to deal with a potential problem that could arise with Duncan's presence.

"I am not to reveal my identity to this merchant. Do not refer to me by name."

"Don't be concerned. I was informed prior."

Leave it to King Aufrey to be just as prepared. All that's left is to wait for my ride to enter the gravel road past city walls. When she finally pulls up beside us, she immediately drops down to the ground and bows.

"Aplogies for being late!"

"You're on time, so raise your head."

I turn and wave to the prince as Peo walks around investigating the wooden wagon.

"Once again, I shall take my leave."

"Safe travels, Cle—"

Duncan almost fails at the first, but stops himself just a second too late. Bailey looks between the two of us before landing curious eyes on me.

"That reminds me, I do not know your name."

"So it would seem."

I glare at the flustered prince, who takes this moment to start his journey back into the city. Unfortunately, this makes it difficult to use the name I had prepared in advance. My brain doesn't have the time to run through any other names without appearing suspicious to a discerning listener. In the end, I can only go with the first one that comes to mind.

"You may call me Clark."

"Mr. Clark? That is quite the unusual name."

"My home is on the outskirts of the continent. That is likely the reason."

Bailey offers to take my luggage, but I shake my head and pull myself into the wooden basket. The space is maybe large enough to fit four people comfortably, assuming that half of the space wasn't occupied by crates. The planks creak under my weight, but it feels sturdy enough to do the job.

"Peo?"

I had expected the young beast to have already boarded, but her black cloak is no present.

"Grrr!"

"Hmph!"

The mule pulling our wagon grunts and swings its head around as Peo arches her back threateningly. Nobody takes any swings, but the two creatures don't back away from the other's challenge.

"Peo."

"Now now! Don't fight!"

With human intervention, the two animals finally back away. Peo continues to cast glares at the mule the entire way around to the wagon's back. Discontent goes both ways as the mule snorts and swings its tail around with extra vigour. It isn't until its owner begins stroking its neck that the creature settles down.

Meanwhile, Peo finally pulls herself in with the heavy load on her back. Dropping the backpack on the seat across from me, she squeezes into the remaining space between me and the large crates.

"You chose there…"

I have no choice but to relocate my own bag to the other end as well to give us a more comfortable ride.

"Is everybody ready?"

Bailey leaps into the front seat and already has the reins in hand.

"We will be in your care."

"Alright! Let us be off!"

One light crack later and the vehicle is pulled into motion. The path ahead is illuminated by the now risen sun and the walls behind slowly recede. As I look back, I see the figure of Duncan still standing at the head of his city.

"So it begins…"

I have no doubt that I will one day return to this place, I will make absolutely sure of it. Whether I want to be within that castle or not, it certainly has fewer threats than the land unknown. Staring at the map gives me a sense of position, but I have no way of predicting what we'll encounter along the way. The one thing I can predict is the catastrophic threat of a Titan at the end of our road.

"In the end, it's just another mission…"

When Duncan waves, I return the motion without any concern for what lies ahead. As far as I'm concerned, riding off to war was far more stressful.